Author Topic: Lens.. (Read 5259 times)

Mongoose · **Reply #15 on:** July 16, 2009, 23:59:05 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #15 on: July 16, 2009, 23:59:05 PM

its all about technique. Its perfectly possible to get a shake free shot hand held at 300mm and 1/60th shutter speed, it takes practice, concentration and a little luck.

That said, the same level of practice, concentration and luck will get you a clear shot at 1/8th when combined with a decent SR system.

Serious · **Reply #16 on:** July 17, 2009, 00:28:53 AM

Re:Lens..

Reply #16 on: July 17, 2009, 00:28:53 AM

Quote from: zpyder

Quote from: Serious
Ive got a 100-300mm lens that I occasionally use hand held, entirely depends on available light though.

I have my 70-300 sigma without IS and thats the one I mentioned about almost always being soft. Its tempting but not quite a priority at the mo!

If you are using it on something like the Canon 350, 400, 450, 40 or similar then the sensor is smaller than full, so you need to apply a multiplier of 1.6X to get the actual resulting focal length of the lens. Nikon have a multiplier of 1.5 IIRC.

So your 70-300mm lens would effectively be 112 to 480mm There are also atmospheric issues at longer ranges using this so it might appear soft due to this issue too. At max zoom you should be using 1/500th of a second in order to have a chance of a sharp image.

zpyder · **Reply #17 on:** July 17, 2009, 08:56:31 AM

Re:Lens..

Reply #17 on: July 17, 2009, 08:56:31 AM

Aye. If you remember though I also mentioned the soft images resulting when using a tripod+remote also. I guess it comes down to the lens quality and focusing etc!

Still, cant complain for a £70 lens I guess, it has taken some decent shots, its just the ratio of good shots to crappy ones is a lot lower than with other cameras/lenses.

Binary Shadow · **Reply #18 on:** July 17, 2009, 12:10:25 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #18 on: July 17, 2009, 12:10:25 PM

£70, sounds like a bargain

maybe i just have shakey hands, it was all over the place at 250

zpyder · **Reply #19 on:** July 17, 2009, 13:13:23 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #19 on: July 17, 2009, 13:13:23 PM

It was cheap, but when it comes to photos you either get nice photos, or bad ones. There isnt much of an in-between imo, and so i dont think £70 is worth it in terms of the end result most of the time, I would rather spend more and get a lens like yours! Ill trade ya!

Serious · **Reply #20 on:** July 17, 2009, 14:29:09 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #20 on: July 17, 2009, 14:29:09 PM

Quote from: Binary Shadow

£70, sounds like a bargain

maybe i just have shakey hands, it was all over the place at 250

Thats pretty normal, use a monopod to support it and hold it closely to your face, left hand supports the lens from underneath, right on the grip and spread your feet a bit.

In many respects its like holding a rifle and in this case the weight can help steady the camera too, light lenses tend to suffer more from shake than heavy ones.

As with using a rifle the longer you do it the better you tend to get.

As I said earlier, try using the fastest shutter speed you can, and take several photos to maximise the chance of getting a good one.

zpyder · **Reply #21 on:** July 17, 2009, 15:33:16 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #21 on: July 17, 2009, 15:33:16 PM

Several? I aim for several dozen to get just one or two shots that are any good with my lens ><

Binary Shadow · **Reply #22 on:** July 17, 2009, 18:03:24 PM

Lens..

Reply #22 on: July 17, 2009, 18:03:24 PM

i usually snap a few since its digital and not costing me anything, i try to take pictures of birds in flight sometimes so i stick it in "sports" mode and end up taking loads and loads, not many are any good but its worth it for the good ones

Binary Shadow · **Reply #23 on:** July 19, 2009, 18:11:32 PM

Lens..

Reply #23 on: July 19, 2009, 18:11:32 PM

seriously tempted to replace my kit 18-55 with the IS version now..

edit: bugger it, just ordered a recond one off ebay

Serious · **Reply #24 on:** July 20, 2009, 00:29:30 AM

Re:Lens..

Reply #24 on: July 20, 2009, 00:29:30 AM

I would have probably went for the 17-85 but the 17-55 f/2.8 is a very nice bit of kit. One Im using is the 24-135 which is nice, I dont do much that requires a wider angle so thats no loss to me.

Generally speaking I put mine on auto and rip off several at once too, mostly all of them come out OK but at odd times you get sequences where one is fine but the rest are all duff.

Main thing is it doesnt cost much to produce all those extra images so you might as well do it.

Mongoose · **Reply #25 on:** July 20, 2009, 19:14:31 PM

Re:Lens..

Reply #25 on: July 20, 2009, 19:14:31 PM

heres a few technique tips for long tele shooting which I posted to another forum. They work for me, Serious has posted some of them already and as he says its very much like shooting a rifle. Im probably above average at this simply because I have been shooting a rifle since I was strong enough to hold one. SR stands for shake reduction, the Pentax IS system.

Quote from: Mongoose

Technique plays a role here as well, here are some tips for whatever they may be worth, they work for me. Im not the worlds best photographer, but I am disapointed if I get noticable camera shake at 1/60th and 300mm (450 equiv) with SR on.

0. Establish a stable base, Seems obvious, but if you arent stable neither is your camera. Get a good footing with feet shoulder width apart. BTW this is zero because I thought of it half way through and didnt want to re-number everything.

1. Relax, dont grip the camera too tight since tense muscles tend to shake more

2. Breathe, take one or two deep breaths, then stop comfortably before you release the shot. By comfortably I mean simply stop breathing at a comfortable point in your breath cycle, not conciously holding your lungs full or empty. For me this is ~1/2 way.

3. Brace yourself, this can mean leaning on a convinient wall, or just tucking your elbows in against your chest will help some. Triangles are the key here. Remember not to tense your muscles, just use any support available.

4. Slouch, youll look stupid and your mum will shout at you for bad posture, but youll shake less. Same reason as 1. I usually go into a slouchy posture as I breath out before I release the shutter

5. Having framed your subject, gently gently depress the shutter. It should take you slightly by surprise when it goes off.

6. Follow Through, when the mirror blackout finishes and the viewfinder image returns, you should still be looking at your subject, beautifully framed. With practice you will have a pretty good idea at this point weather or not the shot came off.

7. Multiple exposures, as a last ditch, when the best shutter speed I can get is really too slow (say under 1/60th at 300mm), I start shooting in bursts of 3 frames. The middle one will often be the best of the three, since you didnt move to take it.

Obviously for fast action some of these become more difficult or impossible, but I reckon good technique is worth at least 2 stops.

Kunal · **Reply #26 on:** July 21, 2009, 10:49:37 AM

Re:Lens..

Reply #26 on: July 21, 2009, 10:49:37 AM

Quote from: Serious

I would have probably went for the 17-85 but the 17-55 f/2.8 is a very nice bit of kit. One Im using is the 24-135 which is nice, I dont do much that requires a wider angle so thats no loss to me.

Generally speaking I put mine on auto and rip off several at once too, mostly all of them come out OK but at odd times you get sequences where one is fine but the rest are all duff.

Main thing is it doesnt cost much to produce all those extra images so you might as well do it.

I use the 17-55 F/2.8 IS as my everyday lens - it really does keep me smiling with the results I get.

I picked up a 2nd hand 70-200mm F/4.0 L which has also worked out very well for me.

Id love a F/2.8 IS one day but to be honest this works for me well often.

News:

Author Topic: Lens.. (Read 5259 times)